View full sizeAP file photoUncertainty with gas prices has resulted in more demand for fuel-efficient autos, like these Toyota hybrid vehicles.

By JOE HALPERN Boston Business Journal

A three-year rise in gasoline prices at the pump is pushing Massachusetts automobile-buyers toward smaller, more efficient vehicles, Boston Business Journal research shows.

And one of the highest-profile car salesmen in the region said the trend has only accelerated in recent months as prices have pushed toward $4 a gallon.

Among models rated at 35 miles per gallon on the highway or more, sales of the 10 most popular models increased 13 percent in 2011 compared with 2010, a Business Journal analysis of data obtained from Polk indicated. Consumers bought 28,405 of the cars in 2011, the data indicated, compared with 25,227 in 2010.

Four of the top 20 cars sold in Massachusetts in 2011 – the Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra and Sonata and Toyota Prius – boasted at least 35 miles per gallon on the highway, according to data obtained from Polk and www.fuelcono
my.gov. The Prius, the lone hybrid model on the state’s top 20 hottest-selling car list last year, easily topped the field with a gas rating of 51 miles per gallon in the city and 48 on the highway.

The Prius is also the most expensive on the top-10 list, with a starting price of $26,400.

The Civic, the sixth most popular new car sold in Massachusetts, with more than 7,000 registered in 2011, gets approximately 25 miles per gallon in the city and 36 on the highway, based on models with automatic transmission, according to www.
fuelconomy.gov

Ernie Boch Jr. of Boch Automotive Group said the trend is obvious in showrooms.

“Practicality is the new buzzword when buying cars,” he said. “Now that the gas prices are rising again, we’re seeing people moving from light trucks (and) SUVs to cars.

“Last year, more people bought light trucks and SUVs than cars. It was something like 55-45. It’s about 50-50 right now .¤.¤. and we expect it to continue moving more so in that direction.”

Boch said sales are on the rise across New England, with inventories healthy – though there are “only so many hybrids out there on the lots.”

Robert O’Koniewski, executive vice president of the Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association, said the trend seems poised to continue. “If gas does go over $4 a gallon this year, and it certainly looks that way, you’ll be seeing drivers getting out of their trucks and into more gas-efficient cars,” he said.